The series of texts composing this book is based on the lectures presented during the II Jose Plinio Baptista School of Cosmology, held in Pedra Azul (Espirito Santo, Brazil) between 9 and 14 March 2014. This II JBPCosmo has been entirely devoted to the problem of understanding theoretical and observational aspects of Cosmic Background Radiation (CMB).The CMB is one of the most important phenomena in Physics and a fundamental probe of our Universe when it was only 400,000 years old. It is an extraordinary laboratory where we can learn from particle physics to cosmology; its discovery in 1965 has been a landmark event in the history of physics.The observations of the anisotropy of the cosmic microwave background radiation through the satellites COBE, WMAP and Planck provided a huge amount of data which are being analyzed in order to discover important informations regarding the composition of our universe and the process of structure formation.

The main focus of this book is on the interconnection of two unorthodox scientific ideas, the varying-gravity hypothesis and the expanding-earth hypothesis. As such, it provides a fascinating insight into a nearly forgotten chapter in both the history of cosmology and the history of the earth sciences. The hypothesis that the force of gravity decreases over cosmic time was first proposed by Paul Dirac in 1937. In this book the author examines in detail the historical development of Dirac's hypothesis and its consequences for the structure and history of the earth, the most important of which was that the earth must have been smaller in the past.

This book provides an overview of essential research on and developments in the electrohydrodynamic (EHD) direct-writing technique and its applications. Firstly, it presents mechano- and helix electrospinning methods to achieve direct writing of straight/serpentine micro/nano fibers in high resolution. Secondly, it examines functional inks and multi nozzle arrays for EHD printing, which are used to efficientlyform patterns and devices. Thirdly, the book discusses the various control methods adopted in the context of EHD to improve the controllability of the electrospun fibers. Lastly, it addresses the equipment used in EHD printing and its applications, while also outlining challenges for the field's future development. Combining academic and industrial viewpoints, the book provides in-depth information for experienced researchers, as well as a valuable guide for those just entering the field.

This book, on the general topic of hydroaerodynamics, investigates a number of exciting applications in this field, addressing specifically issues that allow seemingly paradoxical issues to be dealt with. The first part is devoted to the study of channel flows, in particular the lateral flow of a viscous and viscous-plastic liquid in a ring channel formed by coaxial cylinders. Specifically, the problem of dissipation of mechanical energy in channel flows of highly viscous liquids is addressed and solved. Furthermore, the mechanism leading to hydrodynamic erosion in intra-field pipelines (known as "channelized effect") is identified. Subsequently, a theory for channel flows with mass transfer through porous walls is developed. In the second part, viscous liquid free flows (jets) are investigated. In particular, a dispersion law for turbulent flow is derived and the existence of dynamic invariance in wake flows of variable density is demonstrated. The third part presents new insights from both theoretical and experimental research into concentrated vortex structure formation and development. The conditions for the existence of Taylor-Goertler vortices are determined and the mechanism for their formation is described. Last but not least, the theory of vortex rings, a particularly interesting problem in hydroaerodynamics, is introduced in the last section of this book. Care has been taken, when selecting original theoretical problems of interest, to make the link with related topics in the published literature. At the same time, all experimental research described in this book is given a meaningful physical interpretation and corroborated by suitable theoretical models and computations.

The book celebrates the 65th birthday of Prof. Alexander K. Belyaev-a well-known expert in the field of Dynamics of Mechanical Systems. In addition to reflecting Prof. Belyaev's contributions, the papers gathered here address a range of current problems in Dynamics and Continuum Mechanics. All contributions were prepared by his friends and colleagues, and chiefly focus on theory and applications.

This monograph provides a concise presentation of a mathematical approach to metastability, a wide-spread phenomenon in the dynamics of non-linear systems - physical, chemical, biological or economic - subject to the action of temporal random forces typically referred to as noise, based on potential theory of reversible Markov processes. The authors shed new light on the metastability phenomenon as a sequence of visits of the path of the process to different metastable sets, and focuses on the precise analysis of the respective hitting probabilities and hitting times of these sets. The theory is illustrated with many examples, ranging from finite-state Markov chains, finite-dimensional diffusions and stochastic partial differential equations, via mean-field dynamics with and without disorder, to stochastic spin-flip and particle-hop dynamics and probabilistic cellular automata, unveiling the common universal features of these systems with respect to their metastable behaviour. The monograph will serve both as comprehensive introduction and as reference for graduate students and researchers interested in metastability.

Der Grundkurs Theoretische Physik deckt in 7 Banden alle fur das Diplom und fur Bachelor/Master-Studiengange massgeblichen Gebiete ab. Jeder Band vermittelt das im jeweiligen Semester notwendige theoretisch-physikalische Rustzeug. UEbungsaufgaben mit ausfuhrlichen Loesungen dienen der Vertiefung des Stoffs. Der 4. Band behandelt die Gebiete Thermodynamik und Relativitatstheorie. Fur die Neuauflage wurde er grundlegend uberarbeitet und um 24 Aufgaben erganzt. Durch die zweifarbige Gestaltung ist der Stoff jetzt noch ubersichtlicher gegliedert.

This book introduces two of the most exciting heat pumping technologies, the coabsorbent and the thermal recovery (mechanical vapor) compression, characterized by a high potential in primary energy savings and environmental protection. New cycles with potential applications of nontruncated, truncated, hybrid truncated, and multi-effect coabsorbent types are introduced in this work.

Thermal-to-work recovery compression (TWRC) is the first of two particular methods explored here, including how superheat is converted into work, which diminishes the compressor work input. In the second method, thermal-to-thermal recovery compression (TTRC), the superheat is converted into useful cooling and/or heating, and added to the cycle output effect via the coabsorbent technology. These and other methods of discharge gas superheat recovery are analyzed for single-, two-, three-, and multi-stage compression cooling and heating, ammonia and ammonia-water cycles, and the effectiveness results are given.

The author presents absorption-related topics, including the divided-device method for mass and heat transfer analysis, and truncation as a unique method for a better source-task match. Along with advanced gax recovery, the first and second principles of COP and exergy calculation, the ideal point approaching (i.p.a.) effect and the two-point theory of mass and heat transfer, the book also addresses the new wording of the Laplace equation, the Marangoni effect true explanation, and the new mass and heat exchangers based on this effect.

The work goes on to explore coabsorbent separate and combined cooling, heating, and power (CHP) production and advanced water-lithium bromide cycle air-conditioning, as well as analyzing high-efficiency ammonia-water heat-driven heating and industrial low-temperature cooling, in detail.

Readers will learn how coabsorbent technology is based on classic absorption, but is more general. It is capable of offering effective solutions for all cooling and heating applications (industry, agriculture, district, household, etc.), provided that two supplying heat-sink sources with temperatures outdistanced by a minimum of 12-15 C are available.This book has clear and concise presentation and illustrates the theory and applications with diagrams, tables, and flowcharts."

"Handbook of Energy, Volume I: Diagrams, Charts, and Tables" provides comprehensive, organized coverage on all phases of energy and its role in society, including its social, economic, political, historical, and environmental aspects. While there is a wealth of information about energy available, it is spread across many books, journals, and websites and it tends to target either a particular form of energy or a specific audience."Handbook of Energy" provides a central repository of information that meets diverse user communities. It focuses on visual, graphic, and tabular information in a schematic format. Individuals and researchers at all educational levels will find the "Handbook of Energy" to be a valuable addition to their personal libraries.
Easy-to-read technical diagrams and tables display a vast array of data and concepts"

Many events that affect global energy production and consumption have occurred since the second edition of Energy in the 21st Century appeared in 2011. For example, an earthquake and tsunami in Japan led to the disruption of the Fukushima nuclear facility and a global re-examination of the safety of the nuclear industry. Oil and natural gas prices continue to be volatile, and the demand for energy has been affected by the global economy. The third edition updates data and the discussion of recent events.Energy in the 21st Century has been used as the text for an introductory energy course for the general college student population. Based on student feedback, we have included several features that enhance the value of the third edition as a textbook. In particular, we have included learning objectives at the beginning of each chapter, end of chapter activities, a comprehensive index, and a glossary. Points to Ponder are abbreviated as P2P in the Learning Objectives boxes and are provided throughout the text. They are designed to encourage the reader to consider the material from different perspectives.

Many events that affect global energy production and consumption have occurred since the second edition of Energy in the 21st Century appeared in 2011. For example, an earthquake and tsunami in Japan led to the disruption of the Fukushima nuclear facility and a global re-examination of the safety of the nuclear industry. Oil and natural gas prices continue to be volatile, and the demand for energy has been affected by the global economy. The third edition updates data and the discussion of recent events.Energy in the 21st Century has been used as the text for an introductory energy course for the general college student population. Based on student feedback, we have included several features that enhance the value of the third edition as a textbook. In particular, we have included learning objectives at the beginning of each chapter, end of chapter activities, a comprehensive index, and a glossary. Points to Ponder are abbreviated as P2P in the Learning Objectives boxes and are provided throughout the text. They are designed to encourage the reader to consider the material from different perspectives.

This volume developed from a Workshop on Natural Locomotion in Fluids and on Surfaces: Swimming, Flying, and Sliding which was held at the Institute for Mathematics and its Applications (IMA) at the University of Minnesota, from June 1-5, 2010. The subject matter ranged widely from observational data to theoretical mechanics, and reflected the broad scope of the workshop. In both the prepared presentations and in the informal discussions, the workshop engaged exchanges across disciplines and invited a lively interaction between modelers and observers. The articles in this volume were invited and fully refereed. They provide a representative if necessarily incomplete account of the field of natural locomotion during a period of rapid growth and expansion. The papers presented at the workshop, and the contributions to the present volume, can be roughly divided into those pertaining to swimming on the scale of marine organisms, swimming of microorganisms at low Reynolds numbers, animal flight, and sliding and other related examples of locomotion.

The objective of Volume II is to show how asymptotic methods, with the thickness as the small parameter, indeed provide a powerful means of justifying two-dimensional plate theories. More specifically, without any recourse to any "a priori" assumptions of a geometrical or mechanical nature, it is shown that in the linear case, the three-dimensional displacements, once properly scaled, converge in "H"1 towards a limit that satisfies the well-known two-dimensional equations of the linear Kirchhoff-Love theory; the convergence of stress is also established.

In the nonlinear case, again after "ad hoc" scalings have been performed, it is shown that the leading term of a formal asymptotic expansion of the three-dimensional solution satisfies well-known two-dimensional equations, such as those of the nonlinear Kirchhoff-Love theory, or the von Karman equations. Special attention is also given to the first convergence result obtained in this case, which leads to two-dimensional large deformation, frame-indifferent, nonlinear membrane theories. It is also demonstrated that asymptotic methods can likewise be used for justifying other lower-dimensional equations of elastic shallow shells, and the coupled pluri-dimensional equations of elastic multi-structures, i.e., structures with junctions. In each case, the existence, uniqueness or multiplicity, and regularity of solutions to the limit equations obtained in this fashion are also studied.

Environmental Fluid Dynamics provides an introduction to the principles of environmental fluid dynamics, i.e., nature's use of air and water to transport and transform waste into nutrients for various organisms. The author, a Professor of Environmental Engineering and the Director of the Centre for Water Research at the University of Western Australia, is careful to include the appropriate mathematical expressions for the fundamentals of fluid dynamics without overburdening the reader with difficult or extensive notation. Starting with a discussion of the basics of fluid dynamics for undergraduates, the book moves on to more detailed material for graduate students and specialists in environmental engineering and/or science, physical limnology, estuarine dynamics, and coastal oceanography. Topics covered include equations of motion, fluid viscosity, environmental hydraulics, mixing and dispersion, surface waves, and environmental flows. The materials presented are based on the author's 40 years of teaching fluid dynamics at Berkeley, Caltech, Karlsruhe, Padova, and Western Australia. The book provides a basic overview, while specialists needing more in-depth information can to turn to advanced texts in their specific areas of interest.

This thesis approaches impact resistance in dense suspensions from a new perspective. The most well-known example of dense suspensions, a mixture of cornstarch and water, provides enough impact resistance to allow a person to run across its surface. In the past, this phenomenon had been linked to "shear thickening" under a steady shear state attributed to hydrodynamic interactions or granular dilation. However, neither explanation accounted for the stress scales required for a person to run on the surface. Through this research, it was discovered that the impact resistance is due to local compression of the particle matrix. This compression forces the suspension across the jamming transition and precipitates a rapidly growing solid mass. This growing solid, as a result, absorbs the impact energy. This is the first observation of such jamming front, linking nonlinear suspension dynamics in a new way to the jamming phase transition known from dry granular materials.

This the sixth volume of six from the Annual Conference of the Society for Experimental Mechanics, 2010, brings together 128 chapters on Experimental and Applied Mechanics. It presents early findings from experimental and computational investigations including High Accuracy Optical Measurements of Surface Topography, Elastic Properties of Living Cells, Standards for Validating Stress Analyses by Integrating Simulation and Experimentation, Efficiency Enhancement of Dye-sensitized Solar Cell, and Blast Performance of Sandwich Composites With Functionally Graded Core.

This is the first volume of three, devoted to Mechanics. This book contains classical mechanics problems including kinematics and statics. It is recommended as a supplementary textbook for undergraduate and graduate students from mechanical and civil engineering, as well as for physical scientists and engineers. It contains a basic introduction to classical mechanics, including fundamental principles, statics, and the geometry of masses, as well as thorough discussion on kinematics.

The Handbook of Mathematical Fluid Dynamics is a compendium of essays that provides a survey of the major topics in the subject. Each article traces developments, surveys the results of the past decade, discusses the current state of knowledge and presents major future directions and open problems. Extensive bibliographic material is provided. The book is intended to be useful both to experts in the field and to mathematicians and other scientists who wish to learn about or begin research in mathematical fluid dynamics. The Handbook illuminates an exciting subject that involves rigorous mathematical theory applied to an important physical problem, namely the motion of fluids.

This book provides a general introduction to the rapidly developing astrophysical frontier of stellar tidal disruption, but also details original thesis research on the subject. This work has shown that recoiling black holes can disrupt stars far outside a galactic nucleus, errors in the traditional literature have strongly overestimated the maximum luminosity of "deeply plunging" tidal disruptions, the precession of transient accretion disks can encode the spins of supermassive black holes, and much more. This work is based on but differs from the original thesis that was formally defended at Harvard, which received both the Roger Doxsey Award and the Chambliss Astronomy Achievement Student Award from the American Astronomical Society.

The book provides personal memories along with description of scientific works written by ex-graduate students and research associates of the late Professor Glass. The described research work covers a wide range of shock wave phenomena, resulting from seeds planted by Professor Glass. Professor Glass was born in Poland in 1918. He immigrated together with his parents to Canada at the age of 12 and received all his professional education at the University of Toronto, Canada. He became a world recognized expert in shock wave phenomena, and during his 45 years of active research he supervised more than 125 master and doctoral students, post-doctoral fellows and visiting research associates. In this book seven of his past students/research-associates describe their personal memories of Professor Glass and present some of their investigations in shock wave phenomena which sprung from their past work with Professor Glass. Specifically, these investigations include underwater shock waves, shock/bubble interaction, medical applications of shock wave, various types of shock tubes and shock tube techniques, shock wave attenuation and different types of shock wave reflections.